Quasi-static and dynamic analyses of thin-webbed high-speed gears: Centrifugal effect influence

The objective of this paper is to analyse the effect of centrifugal effects on thin-rimmed/-webbed gears. To this end, an original hybrid gear model is used, which combines lumped parameter elements, finite elements and condensed sub-structures along with a mortar-based mesh interface aiming at coupling mismatched models. It is shown that due to gear body flexibility, centrifugal effects can strongly modify geometry and, consequently, tooth load distributions at high speeds. The possibility to counterbalance these effects by introducing profile and lead modification is investigated. It is finally shown that for the effective tooth design, both thin-rimmed gear geometry and operating conditions must be accounted for.